CHAPTER XXI
WHEREIN IT IS SHOWN THAT JEALOUSY SOMETIMES ABOLISHED
TITLES EVEN BEFORE THE FRENCH REVOLUTION
"As Monsieur de Langeais had said, the Hôtel de Brézé, where Madame Diane then lived, was in the Rue du Figuier St. Paul, only two steps from us, and there it still stands,—this abode of disaster.
"Perrot followed his master at a distance, saw him stop at Madame Diane's door, knock, and then go in. He drew near to the house. Monsieur de Montgommery was speaking haughtily and with much confidence to the valets, who were trying to prevent his entrance, declaring that their mistress was ill in her chamber; but the count forced his way in, and Perrot took advantage of the confusion to creep softly in behind him, as the door remained half open. He knew his way about the house very well, having carried more than one message to Madame Diane. He went upstairs in the darkness behind Monsieur de Montgommery, unopposed, either because nobody saw him, or because the squire's presence was of trifling consequence when the master had broken through all rules.
"At the top of the staircase the count found two of the duchess's women, terrified and weeping, who asked him what he wanted at such an unseasonable hour. Ten o'clock was just striking on all the clocks in the neighborhood. Monsieur de Montgommery replied firmly that he must see Madame Diane at once; that he had something of importance to tell her without delay, and that if she could not receive him, he would wait.
"He spoke loud enough to be heard in the duchess's bedroom, which was close at hand. One of the women went in, and came back at once to say that Madame de Poitiers had retired; but that she would come and speak with the count, who was to wait for her in the oratory.
"The dauphin was not there then, or else he was acting very timorously for a son of France. Monsieur de Montgommery followed the two women without objection as they lighted him into the oratory.
"Perrot then who had been crouching in the darkness of the stairway, went on to the floor above, and hid behind a high curtain in a corridor which separated Madame de Poitiers's bedroom from the oratory where Monsieur de Montgommery was awaiting her. At the ends of this wide passage-way were two disused doors, one of which had formerly led into the oratory, and the other into the bedroom. Perrot found to his great delight that by slipping behind the hangings of one or the other of these doors, which had been allowed to remain for symmetry's sake, though no longer in use, and by listening attentively, he could hear almost every word that was said in either apartment. Not that my brave husband was influenced by mere idle curiosity, Monseigneur; but the count's last words as he parted from us, and an undefinable instinct, warned him that his master was running some risk, and that at this very moment they were setting a trap for him perhaps; so he determined to remain at hand to assist him in case of need.
"Unfortunately, as you will see, Monseigneur, not one of the words that he heard and afterward repeated to me threw the least ray of light upon the obscure and fatal question which is in our minds to-day.
"Monsieur de Montgommery had not waited two minutes when Madame de Poitiers entered the oratory rather hurriedly.
"'What is the trouble, Monsieur?' said she; 'and why this nocturnal invasion after my request that you would not come to-day?'
"'I will tell you frankly in a word, Madame; but send these women away first. Now listen to me. I will be very brief. I have been told that I have a rival in your affection; that my rival is the dauphin, and that he is with you here this very evening.'
"'And you must have believed it, since you came running here to make sure?' said Madame Diane, haughtily.
"'I was in agony, Diane, and I came here hoping to find a cure for my suffering.'
"'Very well; and now you have seen me,' replied Madame de Poitiers, 'you know that your informants lied to you; so leave me to get some rest. In Heaven's name, go, Jacques!'
"'No, Diane,' said the count made suspicious, no doubt, by her haste to get rid of him; 'for if they did lie in claiming that the dauphin was here now, they may not have lied in assuring me that he will be here before the evening is over; and I shall be very glad to prove them slanderers at every point.'
"'And so you will remain, Monsieur?'
"'I will remain, Madame. Do you go and lie down if you are ill, Diane. I will keep watch over your slumber, if you are willing.'
"'But by what right will you do this, Monsieur?' cried Madame de Poitiers. 'What title have you? Am I not free still?'
"'No, Madame,' replied the count, steadily, 'you are no longer free to make a loyal gentleman whose attentions you have accepted the laughing-stock of the whole court.'
"'At all events, I will not accept this last attention,' said Madame Diane. 'You have no more right to remain here than other people have to laugh at you. You are not my husband, are you? And I don't bear your name, so far as I am aware.'
"'Oh, Madame,' cried the count, in despair, 'what does it matter to me how much they laugh at me? That is not the question? Mon Dieu, no! and you know it, Diane; and it is not my honor that lies bleeding and crying to you for pity, but my love. If I had been offended by the gibes of those three idiots, I would have drawn my sword on them, and that would have been the end of it. But my heart was torn, Diane, and I came flying to you. My dignity! my reputation! it is not about those that I am troubled, not in the least; it is because I love you, and am raving mad with jealousy; because you have told me and proved to me that you love me; and because I will kill any one who dares to interfere with this love which is my all, whether he be dauphin or the king himself, Madame! I don't worry about the shape my vengeance shall take, I assure you. But as God lives, I will be revenged!'
"'And revenged for what, pray? and why?' demanded an imperious voice behind Monsieur de Montgommery.
"Perrot shivered with fear of what was to come; for across the dimly lighted corridor he saw Monsieur le Dauphin, who is to-day king, and in his wake the harsh and mocking features of Monsieur de Montmorency.
"'Heaven help me!' cried Madame Diane, falling upon a couch and wringing her hands; 'this is just what I feared.'
"Monsieur de Montgommery at first gave only a short sharp cry of dismay. Then Perrot heard him say with a marvellously calm voice,—
"'Monseigneur le Dauphin, just one word, by your leave! Tell me that you have not come here because you love Madame de Poitiers, and because Madame de Poitiers loves you.'
"'Monsieur de Montgommery,' replied the dauphin, restraining his rising anger, 'just one word, by my command! Tell me that I do not find you here because Madame Diane loves you, and because you love Madame Diane.'
"Matters having reached this stage, the actors were no longer the heir of the mightiest throne in the world and a simple gentleman, his subject, but two men, angered and jealous rivals, two suffering hearts, two distraught minds.
"'I was Madame Diane's chosen and accepted husband, as everybody knew, and as you knew,' replied Monsieur de Montgommery, altogether omitting the title by which the prince had a claim to be addressed.
"'A mere promise in the air, a forgotten promise,' cried Henri; 'and although perhaps of more recent date than yours, the rights of my love are no less sure, and I will maintain them.'
"'Ah, the villain! he speaks of his rights!' cried the count, already drunk with rage and jealousy. 'Do you dare to say, then, that this woman belongs to you?'
"I say that she doesn't belong to you, at all events,' replied Henri; 'I say that I am at Madame's house with Madame's approbation, and I fancy that you can hardly say the same. So I am impatiently awaiting your departure, Monsieur.'
"'If you are so impatient, well and good! let us go together; that's very simple.'
"'A challenge!' cried Montmorency, coming forward at this. 'Do you dare, Monsieur, to offer a challenge to the Dauphin of France?'
"'There is no Dauphin of France in the case at all,' replied the count; 'there is only a man who claims to be beloved by the woman whom I love, that's all.'
"He must have made a pass at Henri at this juncture, for Perrot heard Diane cry out,—
"'He means to insult the prince! he will murder the prince! Help!'
"Embarrassed, no doubt, by the strange part she was playing, she rushed out of the room, notwithstanding Monsieur de Montmorency's efforts to detain her by assuring her that she need not be afraid, for they were two against one, and had a strong escort below. Perrot saw Madame Diane cross the corridor and burst into her own room, weeping violently and calling aloud for her women and the dauphin's people.
"But her flight had no tendency to allay the heat of the two adversaries, far from it; and Monsieur de Montgommery repeated with bitter meaning the word 'escort' which had just been uttered.
"'It is with the swords of his retainers, doubtless,' said he, 'that Monseigneur le Dauphin intends to avenge these insults?'
"'No, Monsieur,' replied Henri, proudly, 'my sword alone will suffice to punish an insolent villain.'
"Each already had his hand upon his sword-hilt, when Monsieur de Montmorency interposed.
"'Pardon, Monseigneur,' said he; 'but he who may be king to-morrow has no right to put his life in jeopardy to-day. You are not a man, Monseigneur; you are a whole nation. A dauphin of France draws his sword only for France herself.'
"'But in that case,' cried Monsieur de Montgommery, 'a dauphin of France, who has everything at command, should not filch from me the one on whom my whole life depends, who is in my eyes dearer than my honor, than my native country, than my child in its cradle, even than my immortal soul itself; for she had made me forget all these,—this woman who has perhaps been false to me. But no, she is not false to me; it cannot be, for I love her too dearly! Monseigneur, pardon my violence and my madness, I beg, and condescend to tell me that you do not love Diane. Of course you would not come to the house of one you loved accompanied by Monsieur de Montmorency and a mounted escort of eight or ten! I ought to have thought of that.'
"'I chose,' said Monsieur de Montmorency, 'to attend Monseigneur with an escort this evening, despite his objections, because I had been secretly warned that a trap would be laid for him to-day. However, I meant to go no farther than the door of the house; but your loud voice, Monsieur, reached my ears, and was the cause of my coming farther than I intended, and thus becoming convinced of the accuracy of the intelligence afforded by the unknown friends who put me upon my guard so opportunely.'
"'Ah, I know who they are, these unknown friends!' said the count, laughing bitterly. 'They are the same ones, no doubt, who notified me also that the dauphin would be here this evening; and their plans have succeeded to admiration, to their delight no doubt, and to hers who set them about it. For Madame d'Étampes, I presume, had no object except to compromise Madame de Poitiers by a public scandal. So Monsieur le Dauphin, in coming to pay his visit with an army in attendance, has marvellously helped on this marvellous scheme! Aha! so you have no longer to show the least discretion, Henri de Valois, in your relations with Madame de Brézé? So you label her publicly as your declared favorite, do you? She is really yours by a certified and authenticated title; and I can no longer doubt or hope? You have surely stolen her from me beyond recall, and with her my happiness and my life? Well, then, by heaven and earth! I have no more occasion to be discreet either'. Because you are the son of France, Henri de Valois, is no reason why I should cease to be a gentleman; and you shall give me satisfaction for this insult, or you are nothing but a coward!"
"'Scoundrel!' cried the dauphin, drawing his sword and springing at the count.
"But Monsieur de Montmorency again threw himself between them.
"'Monseigneur, once more I say that in my presence the heir to the throne shall not cross swords about a woman with a —'
"'With a gentleman of more ancient race than you, foremost baron in Christendom though you be!' the count burst in, fairly beside himself. 'Besides, every noble is as good as the king; and kings have not always been so discreet, as you undertake to claim, and for very good reasons. Charles of Naples challenged Alphonse of Arragon, and François I., not so very long ago, challenged Charles V. "That was king against king," you say. 'Very well! Monsieur de Nemours, the king's nephew, called out an humble Spanish captain. The Montgommerys are every whit as good as the Valois; and as they have many times intermarried with the royal children of France and England, there is no reason why they should not fight with them. The Montgommerys of old bore the arms of France pure in the second and third quarterings. After their return from England, whither they followed William the Conqueror, their arms were azure, a lion, or, armed, and lampassé argent, with the motto Garde lieu! and three fleurs-de-lis on a field gules. Come, then, Monseigneur, our arms are like our swords, a fitting guarantee of our knightly prowess. Ah, if you loved this woman as I do, and if you hated me as I hate you! But no, you are a mere timid boy, happy in being able to hide behind your preceptor.'
"'Monsieur de Montmorency, let me go!' cried the dauphin, struggling fiercely with Montmorency, who was holding him back.
"'No, by Heaven!' said Montmorency, 'I will not let you fight with this madman! Below there! Help! help!' he shouted at the top of his voice.
"And Diane, too, leaning over the stairway, could be distinctly heard crying with all her might,—
"'Help! Come up, you fellows! Are you going to let your masters be murdered?'
"This Delilah-like perfidy—for, after all, they were two to one against Monsieur de Montgommery—undoubtedly excited the count's blind fury to the highest pitch. Perrot, paralyzed with terror, heard him say,—
"'Does it need, then, the last insult of all to convince you,—you and your go-between,—Henri de Valois, that you must give me satisfaction?'
"Perrot supposed that he then approached the dauphin and threatened to strike him with his hand, for Henri roared like a tiger. But Monsieur de Montmorency had evidently caught the count's arm, for while he was shrieking louder than ever, 'Help! help!' Perrot, who could see nothing, heard the prince cry out,—
"'His glove touched my face! He must die by no other hand than mine, now, Montmorency!'
"All this took place with the rapidity of lightning. Just at that moment the escort came in; then ensued a savage combat, and a tremendous noise of trampling, and clashing steel. Monsieur de Montmorency cried, 'Bind the madman!' And the dauphin, 'Don't kill him! In Heaven's name, don't kill him!'
"This one-sided battle didn't last a moment. Perrot hadn't time even to rush to his master's assistance. He got as far as the threshold; and there he saw one of the escort lying on the floor, and two or three others covered with blood. But the count was disarmed, and already bound and tightly held by five or six armed men who had attacked him at once. Perrot, who was not noticed in the confusion, thought he could be of more use to Monsieur de Montgommery by remaining free, and in condition to let his friends know, or to rescue him on some more favorable occasion. So he returned noiselessly to his post, and there, on the alert and with his hand on his sword, he waited—since his master was not killed, or even wounded—until it was time to show himself, and perhaps save him; for you will soon see, Monseigneur, that neither resolution nor daring was lacking in my good husband; But he was as prudent as he was valiant, and knew how to make skilful use of his opportunities. For the moment his cue was to watch; and that is what he did, carefully and with perfect self-possession.
"Meanwhile Monsieur de Montgommery, tightly pinioned, was still crying out,—
"'Didn't I tell you, Henri de Valois, that you would have to fight with ten swords against my one, and meet my insult with the obedient courage of your soldiers?'
"'You hear, Monsieur de Montmorency!' said the trembling dauphin.
"'Let him be gagged!' was Monsieur de Montmorency's only reply. 'I will soon give you your instructions,' said he to the men, 'as to what is to be done with him. Meanwhile keep careful watch on him; you shall answer for him to me with your heads.'
"And he left the oratory, taking the dauphin with him. They passed through the corridor, where Perrot was hiding behind the hangings, and went into Madame Diane's apartment.
"Perrot thereupon went over to the other wall, and applied his ear to the other disused door.
"The scene of which he had already been an auditor was on the whole less terrible than that to which he was now to listen.”